Monday, January 28, 2013

For anyone unfamiliar with the situation on the ground at Punggol East, the results of the by-election is indeed surprising. The popular opinion at the start of the contest was it would be a close one but the PAP candidate was likely to win. Instead of this, we see a 11% swing away from the PAP candidate. A hypothetical 11% swing in the GE 2016 will not only take the PAP votes to below 50%, it is likely to take away its majority in parliament - the PAP will have to seek coalition partner from the opposition to stay in power or be kicked out - I don't think the leaders in PAP slept well yesterday. While a win by WP was always a possibility, the wide margin was a big surprise for many.

I will cite a few of the minor reasons that might have helped to contributed to the margin before I get to the major ones. One commonly cited reason on the mainstream media is this is a by-election so voters are more willing to vote for the opposition. The by-election effect was cleverly used by Chiam See Tong in the 1990s who tried to turn the opposition weakness to strength by returning the PAP to power on nomination day during general elections. If you look at the election results when this strategy was used, it probably account a few extra % of the votes because most people expected the PAP to be returned to power anyway given its dominance. How many people voted for the PAP in 2011 instead of the opposition because they fear it would lose the general elections? If you look at the 1992 by-election held shortly after the 1991 election when PAP lost an unprecedented 4 SMCs, there was a swing of 4% to the opposition[Link] - it was also a 4 corner fight but the main opposition party (SDP) running at that time was led by Chee (before his sacking from NUS and hunger strike) was far stronger that the one running during the GE 1991 (JPS) yet we saw only a swing of 4%.

Another contributor to the margin was the poor campaign strategy by the PAP. In the early part it appeared to be led by Dr. Koh. himself, an complete political amateur who joined the PAP just 3 weeks before the by-election. When he was first introduced, he looked like the cookie-cutter PAP candidate that personally benefited greatly from the system and he expressed his belief that the system was good and no major changes required - exactly the same views expressed by Tin Peh Ling in 2011 GE. Then he tried to play up his childhood poverty... eating from biscuit tins, bus driver father, living in a kampong - he seemed to forget that Singapore was a 3rd world country at that time and most Singaporeans in their 40s have even sadder stories to tell about their childhood. He was really losing the audience when tried to tell them he had "suffered" poverty...but so did every else. Then he went on to say and do a few things that showed that he was disconnected from the ground:

He said that "everyone owns a car" which I take to mean that he thought most professionals drove cars - other interpretations make even less sense. This was true maybe when Dr. Koh was in JC or serving his NS but he seemed to be unaware that at today's prices most professionals don't own one and if you are raising a family it is even harder to own a car when you sometimes really need it. He then went on to do an unconvincing publicity stunt of pulling leaves from a drain. It is not possible to believe anyone would do something like this spontaneously so it was clear he was doing to get publicity and to artificially project a "do gooder" image. To voters, something like this is insincere and called to question whether all his earlier "hard life" stories were just cherry-picked to win sympathy. At some point, the PAP leadership realised things were not right and stepped in shore up the campaign but it was too late.

The WP ran an efficient, effective and highly coordinated campaign relative to other parties selecting a candidate the voters were familiar with rather than someone with high qualifications. While the mainstream media was as usual biased towards the PAP, the WP had one resource that was invaluable during the election - volunteers, Singaporeans young and old willing to give their time to the campaign, there are very few things more powerful than large number of people passionately championing their cause :

The difference in quality of campaigning definitely contributed to the large margin but you cannot have a campaign as successful WP's without a strong wind blowing behind you. The massive crowds coming to the rallies and willingness of people to volunteer for the campaign is driven by underlying factors that also drove swing voters to vote for the opposition.

The discontent rose because almost every single thing that affected the quality of in Singapore has gotten worse in the 1.5 years since the last election. Housing prices were at a new high when the by-election was called so was the COE. The foreign influx continued and the population increased by 130,000 in 2012[Link] - 8 times the increase in Singaporeans. This is after the govt promised to "moderate" the flow after GE2011 election. Can you imagine what would happen if they were not given a clear signal then? With the population increase, the density of population goes up and the problems expand and multiply to become less solvable. Yet the PAP spent a large part of the period after the ministerial pay review and some manpower policy tweaks which it said addressed the discontentment seen in GE 2011, to try to convince Singaporeans that a higher foreign population influx is needed as if all the problems associated with the earlier influx has been solved. We know the PAP is doing this because a higher influx helps to satisfy the thirst of GLCs and corporations for cheap labor allowing them to generate higher profits. In the short run, it helps the economy to grow but Singaporeans now know the long term consequences of this policy - higher income gap, high living density which will erode the quality of life and escalate the cost of living.

"Govt has always been working with S'poreans to improve lives"
- PM Lee, during PAP's election rally [Link]

Singaporeans today find it hard to believe that the PAP puts the interests of the people first ahead of everything else. The PAP is now linked in inextricable ways to a network of GLCs and runs an elitist system that sees benefits of the system concentrated in a smaller number of elites that the PAP depend on in its power structure. In Singapore, we have the highest paid ministers in the world and the lowest paid bus drivers, cleaner and kindergarten teachers in the developed world - a 3rd world wage structure. This income gap, the highest in the developed world, reflect not the difference in ability of human beings but the unequal distribution of power in our society. Last year we again saw no improvement to the income gap. Dr. Koh Poh Boon who works in Mount Elizabeth is probably one of the highest paid specialist in his area among Asian counter-parts because he is a beneficiary of govt policies that encourages medical tourism for the rich in the region. This policy has caused a reduction in the capacity of our public healthcare system because men like Dr. Koh will move to private hospitals to earn more money from rich medical tourists. This drives up the cost of medical care for Singaporeans who now shoulder the highest % of medical care expenditure out of their own pockets among citizens of developed countries. This cost spiral has not stopped - Dr. Koh praises the system that benefited himself forgetting the price ordinary Singaporeans have to pay.

Today we see more Singaporeans rejecting the system because they find it hard to accept the outcomes. The Punggol East election is the latest sign that all is not well and the system is heading for trouble. 7 years when this blog was started it discussed the set of challenges for our leaders and the problems ahead. These problems have grown and become harder to solve because the PAP made the wrong policy choices and went along the wrong direction for too long causing the problems to become entrenched. When the influx of foreign workers was identified as a cause of wage depression at the lower end more than a decade ago, the PAP was unconcerned and went on to import even more foreign workers until almost all industries became dependent on the continuously expanding influx neglecting investment on productivity and innovation. Now even small tweaks to moderate the influx are strongly resisted by industries - the problem has become harder to fix. The PAP has perhaps manoeuvre itself into a position where the deepening problems require stronger action to turn things around but it is ideological lens shrinks the problems we know are severe and restrains it from taking more action.

Even when a very clear, strong signal is delivered, the PAP goes quickly into denial

"Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said yesterday by-elections are prone to big swings and the results of Saturday's Punggol East race will not affect how the People's Action Party handles national issues" - The New Paper 29 Jan 2013.

At this point, it is becoming dangerous for the PAP not to listen to the people. With the current set of policies, things can only get worse going into GE 2016. The people may not send a send another strong warning signal in 2016 but instead deliver a strong deadly blow that will shatter the PAP's power structure as it no longer benefits the ordinary Singaporean.

117 comments:

Please do not discount the possibility of PAP giving away its' power, when situation gets very bad. There is nothing for its'(PAP) Members to lose and everything to gain if they voluntarily retire from politics.If and whence it happens, whoever takes over will just inherit the shits the Incumbents leave behind.

LHL may choose to speed up naturalization of foreigners. The status quo will fight back every inch to prevent the lost of power. They would also be expected to hand out large amount of monies to foreigners. Recent HDB BTO which allow foreigners to jump queue ahead of Singaporeans is example.

When opposition ascend power, LHL and LKY need to prepare themselves for corruption trial and abuse of human rights.

Today probably around 25-30% of citizen is naturalized. Given that 80% of naturalized citizens supported their benefactor party, I estimate that the support among native Singaporeans is barely 50%.

We may need big economics disaster in Singapore to jolt PAP out of power. Without this, PAP may not go. Hopefully, a blow up in US causes property everywhere in the whole world to plunge or inflation to hike.

Wow, and we all thought they were bringing in 100k per year of new FT. Looks like even 200k per year will not be enough to stop their support from plunging below 40%.

Faced with adversity, you see the true colours of our leeders and scholars - first they lie (or cry), then they deny, then they pretend to compromise ("our programs was not given time to show results"). The PAP and top civil servants and CEOS of GLCs/ TLCs have never been taught to salvage a capsizing ship. It cannot break away from the group-think typical of crony-elites - life has been so good they think suckers will always be suckers. The only response left is to play hard-ball, which will destroy their wealth faster than they can count to three. Will our NS boys shoot at us when that day comes?

There is a vast difference when you want to serve on your own accord as compared to those who are invited and perhaps even offered with $$$ gains.A country cannot take its citizen for granted, self-serve themselves with the world's highest paid salary and expect those under them to eat the skin of the bread. NO WAY YOU TREAT YOUR PEOPLE AND FUTURE CHILDREN THIS WAY!!!!!!!!

The PAP is increasingly disconnected with the Singaporean public, and it has been mentioned by Catherine Lim before. When she wrote that down in an article, the incumbent pressed a suit against her and demanded payment for damages, while the mainstream media criticised her and claimed that she will "get away with it" because she is rich. But to be fair to her, the tide of events is turning way way faster than imagined and her predictions are becoming true one by one. I agree with what Veritas said about the PM wanting to speed up the naturalization of foreigners to allow for a vast load of 'gratitude voters' who will vote for the PAP, but if we count in the fact that there are a growing number of young people who knows what the PAP is up to, can they sit so comfortably on their laurels????

I would like to give a further historical context to the high pay of our minister. The million dollar salary for ministers were floated during the early 90s under Goh Chok Tong. Parallelly, Goh Chok Tong started the "property enhancement" an euphemism for property inflation, with sole motive only to screw the working class Singaporeans.

In retrospect, our property inflation may not be possible if minister's salary are not hike corresponding to allow them to have the purchasing power to access the landed property.

High minister salary corrupts every facet of Singapore's society. If minister are paid a respectable but not exorbitant salary, he will align himself to middle class Singaporeans.

What happen is their salary are peg to say 14 times of janitor like what the German does?

That will make them think twice about their ultra-capitalist ideology.

The salary hike of ministers has prevent them from suffering the pain of citizens. And worst by giving more pain to citizens by re-interpreting runaway property inflation as economic growth, our ministers get even more salary.

The solution to the problem is we must not let our minister salary automatically adjusted to inflation. We need to bring their salary to a level that any policy that cause inflation give them a lot of pain. To do that, we need to peg their salary to roughlt 14x the salary of bottom 10% of citizens.

The real reason for the influx cannot be said openly. CPF. The gahmen has already disclosed the following:

1. Singapore's population is aging. (It also means that the average age of the working population, currently at about 2.1 million, will also raise. Don't forget that in this group, almost half are foreigners. Also disclosed by Shamemugan that half of SIngapore's taxes are paid by foreigners also. So this estimate seems reasonable.)

2. that without immigrants to Singapore, the population will start to decline.

Think about it, working population is declining and their average age going up. (even with the immigrants on steroids policy, although at a slower rate)

CPF is NOT a bank or an investment fund. The set-up is basically a pool of money $$ that pays it's members when certain criteria is met. That means, the contributions into the fund MUST always be greater than the withdrawals. Or else it will go bankrupt. (Most recent amount of all CPF members' balance is about $207.55 billion)

Data for the Oct to Dec 2011 period is:

Contributions: about $5.75 billionWithdrawals: about $2.76 billion

Explore the CPF website and notice the upward creep of the total withdrawals and the downward trend of the total contributions in the data.

In 2008, Morgan Stanley estimated the GIC to have about US$300 billion and Temasek Holdings to have about US$142 billion.

According the CIA world factbook, Singapore gahmen's total debt is about $371 billion. (118.2% of GDP, 2011 estimates)

Sing gahmen has always said that the funds in GIC are accumulated from gahmen surpluses over the years. If we accept their explanation, it means the GIC funds will be ringfenced and will NOT be used to bail out the CPF.

Now, gahmen has not said anything about Temasek Holdings. Even if we draftees dreamily assume that somehow TH funds can be tapped in an emergency for the CPF, there isn't enough to guarantee the entire CPF funds of members.

The only way the gahmen knows is to continue with this immigrants on steroids policy to ensure the contributions into the CPF will always exceed the withdrawals. (While at the same time, place various obstacles to delay your withdrawal of your CPF.)

But rest assured that the gahmen will slow the immigrant intake for a few years. Not because they have heard your voices or learnt their lesson in 2011. But as LHL said, they are running up against physical limits and constraints. Meaning, they finally found out that Singapore is too small.

But no bother, now 'research' has been done that concludes that Singapore can increase the building density, change mindset about the population density. (Meaning accept the higher population density. It's not going to go lower.) Smaller HDB flats are desirable. (When that fails, claim that HDB flats have not shrunk. It's all in your minds.)

Now, tell me, how is it possible for Singapore to wean itself from the immigrants on steroids policy?

If your conclusion is the same as mine, then, go to someplace here the population density is lower.

1. Singapore's population is aging. (It also means that the average age of the working population, currently at about 2.1 million, will also raise. Don't forget that in this group, almost half are foreigners. Also disclosed by Shamemugan that half of SIngapore's taxes are paid by foreigners also. So this estimate seems reasonable.)

2. that without immigrants to Singapore, the population will start to decline.

The FT policy is clearly not for population replace. Its for crazy population expansion. Our property and banking sector needs ever increasing people else they will collapse.

But then, I agree with you that CPF is a ponzi fund, feeding the corrupt GIC and Temasek. Before, under the classical gold standards, all citizen's savings goes into gold reserve. We should by gold instead of investing like a mad hedge fund.

I think PAP may have hatch up another evil plan. The native poor Singapore would be relocate to Iskandar region if secret deal with Malaysia goes through. Singapore would be for mega rich.

I hope to see a coalition government in the next GE. It is important that alternative parties are able to win a few more GRCs. After that, they can abolish the GRC system, COE, GST for medical, HDB for non citizens, mandatory NS, low tax for foreigners and all the highly paid people who are doing nothing in all the GICs, TH, MPs.

No immigrants, Singapore will die. Singaporeans will also suffer and die.

With immigrants, Singapore will not die even if Singaporeans suffer and die.

So the better choice is to have immigrants lah.

You are wrong. Countries without crazy immigration policies are the richest and most prosperous. Look at Switzerland, Liechtenstein...etc. Gulf states take in lots of foreigners but they make sure their citizen got free land in prime business area, free healthcare, free education, and garantee job in civil service for graduates.

Our problems are due to crazy FT policies. Without, PAP will have to implement pro-family pro-social policy to make our life better. Maybe a 35 hours work week.

With all these crazy FT policies, PAP would'nt care less. I am pro "true talent". We must not have siege mentality. But 99% FT PAP imported are half-bake, rascal or even criminals. These half-bake FT can 100% replaceable by locals.

They are here to depress salary and play racism against Singapore. PAP also make Singaporeans subsidize FT. We serve the NS. Our 2 years wasted to ensure FT have security. We get paid shit.

PAP now want FT to jump ahead of BTO. And PAP force citizens earning over $10,000 a month into private property to backstop and provide a price floor for foreign property speculator.

PAP acquire our land foreably in dirt cheap price and sell it to private developer to build condos for foreigners.

Recently nuts PAP decided to dig up Bukit Brown cemetry because Singapore traffic is getting crowded due to FT.

The truth is the ruling elites betrayed the trust of Singaporeans. They allow foreigners to own several properties, renting them out and earning passive income and assets appreciation without the need to pay tax. While the local have to pay sky high housing, COE, social costs.

Our post-graduate research position are given 99% to foreigners. We paid for all their living expenses and tuition. Some labs like the one run by Professor Law Choi Look of NTU EEE, are 100% foreigners. Fucking Law Choi Look is my former teacher and I quite fond of him. But his discrimination of Singaporeans makes him an enemy of Singaporeans.

Others like Yong Siew Toh conservatory of NUS is 90-100% foreigners AT UNDERGRADUATE LEVEL. Most foreigners come here cannot get a 2nd upper for 1st degree. Yet PAP continues to give them 100% free tuition while put better local students into debt.

In MOE secondary school, I used to teach classes that are 80% foreigners. All our tax-payer $$$ goes down to shit hole.

I believe LKY and LHL is planing a total anilihation of native Singaporeans, a slow one however.

Who's brainwashed by PAP? You mean WP, the "opposition" that admonished the government to have less stringent foreign manpower policies, predicated on the trite PAP logic that Singaporeans do not want to work in "lowly" jobs? Call themselves the "Workers' Party". They should be advocating higher wages and greater productivity and investment in automation instead of taking the easy way out by importing low skilled foreign workers from Third World countries.

Economic powerhouses such as Denmark, Norway, Finland, Japan and South Korea have no problems keeping the proportion of foreigners to under 10%. Surely the highest paid government in the world can do better than these countries? Once again, where is the First World Parliament that WP promised? It looks more like a First World echo chamber to me with WP providing the much needed echoing.

Lucky, who are you writing for? Your piece is packed with warnings and advice for the PAP on how to do better. It may not be intentional, but the way you put and phrase things, you seem to be on the PAP side, and keen on helping them along, rather than taking a non-committal view.

I believe they will continue implement policies to flatten themselves. They are already millionaire or billionaire with many properties in oversea. Any problem on this little red dot they will leave the country. So why care about Singapore or their party lose.

Hi Lucky, Karl Marx predicted that LKY and LHL don give a damn even" 7 years when this blog was started it discussed the set of challenges for our leaders and the problems ahead. These problems have grown and become harder to solve because the PAP made the wrong policy choices and went along the way direction for too long causing the problems to become entrenched. "

Marx by observing how society works came to conclusion that no matter how logical or how hard the people supplicate, the elites can only disdain and despise. Marx see violent revolution as the solution not because he is wicked, but elites will fight all they can to protect status quo.

To make elites listen, you must be able to threaten them with physical harm, lost of power and prestige or lost of wealth.

In Russia and China, wicked communist emerge as leaders not because of Marxism is wicked, but because the elites are willing to use high intensity force against the people that eventually, evil military genius emerge as leaders.

In Switzerland or Nordic Europe which are fairly socialist, socialism is achieve by trade unions and democratic system. The socialist there is the least violent human being you can find.

If we want to change our society, we need to threaten LKY and LHL with lost of power. Everyone in Singapore got to unite to vote them out.

"Lucky, who are you writing for?" -even within PAP there are people who do not agree with familee. Once the empire is threatened, many in pap will also come out and voice their displease. this is very normal when a ruling party starting to lose support.

28/1/13 20:13 -I don't think it's fair to compare First World countries like Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark to a Third World country like Singapore.

Maybe compare to Brunei is the best. Just across the sea, not so far. Pay no tax, housing is interest free, car is widely own by each family, medical free, education free, everyone happy. They have oil but we have something better than oil.

every year before the budget, the big, medium and small sized accounting, auditing, tax, advisory firms have been advocating the reduction of company tax and reduction of highest tier income tax. You should have known especially the big ones.

On top of this, these firms are also advocating the continual opening of floodgate to unlimited number of foreigners.

For many years, PAP listen to these firms attentively and act on the recommendation of these firms faithfully. On the other hand, when Singapore citizens recommend any suggestions, PAP treat the citizen suggestion as nuisance.

These firms have been benefiting from these cut in tax and the influx of foreigners, thank you to the PAP.

As a result of tax cut and influx of foreigners, approved by the PAP, the business of these firms are prospering and they grow exponentially.

Lower tax coupled with more foreigners mean more business to serve more foreign companies and thus more revenues for these firms.

More revenues for these firms do not translate to more tax, instead the firms are paying more or less the same amount of tax because of enjoyment of lower tax rate.

With net profit margin exceeding 90% year in year out, these firms seem not to be satisfied. These firms are so greedy that they still want the PAP to reduce the company tax and the highest tier of income tax.

As a result of the huge profit made by these firms, the management and partners of these firms receive huge salary, bonus and fees. With these high income, the management and partners buy Rolex watches, Jaguar car, Merce Benz car, Properties like collecting stamps.

So, we know why PAP choose to bring down company tax, bring down highest tier of income tax, open the floodgate to foreigners to benefit the management of companies and firms.

On the other hand, PAP has to top up the shortfall of tax collection by increasing GST and PAP expect Singapore Citizen to bear with the depressed wages and the competition of jobs as certain quota of jobs must be allocated to the foreigners.

The pap is dead. Years of misguided and dogmatic policies have led to many unsolvable problems. The worst is the entrench mindset and attitude of the papist top dogs. Only a major change at the top will the pap has any chance in GE2016.

Come 2016 General Election, we only have to tune the electorates' mindset to treat it as a one big By Election and we are done with the PAP once and for all. Special thanks and tributes to Teo Chee Hean, Ng Eng Hen and Gillian Koh.

Politics is like business. If you don't give customers satisfaction, don't expect them to come back to you even if you are a famous brand. Now even the $80 per hour PRC ladies in Geylang knows this, why do the millionaire ministers and MIWs cunt understand?

For one, I thought Koh did well as a complete rookie. The fault lies with the PAP here, for sticking to their same old election strategy, and putting Koh in this mess.

Secondly, there are many who clamoured for the PAP to be voted out of power come 2016. But just today WP's Low openly said his party is not ready to form an alternative govt. Personally, I respect the man for this. He knows he needs time to build up and really does not disagree with the govt too fundamentally, only asking that they make changes to existing policies.

In the next 3.5 years, Singaporeans will really need to reflect rationally on whether the changes that will be made to the cost of living and other issues are back on track. If yes, I don't see why the current parliamentary status quo is an issue, we can even have a couple more opposition MPs in.

If no, we really need to see who are the available alternative govt. Can the WP form the govt? They seem the best choice now, but they are not ready and may not be ready in 2016 even. What about the likes of Chee, Kenneth J, Desmond Lim? Election results prove themselves. These guys have even more to prove before they can even be considered good leaders. I personally stay in Sembawang, and I see very little of Chee and his party here, but they contest here for GE all the time. We need more than some jokers who show their passion when election time comes along. We need true quality. Lets hope, that this true quality, if not completely alike, at least in the mould of our past generations, will be there to be chosen come 2016.

WP may have scored an unexpected victory, but the road ahead is long. First, they do not have the resources (money and qualified manpower) to form the next government, that's why the teochew boss said that they only want to slap the driver, not take over the hot seat. So, all u brilliant people out there, if you care for the future of Singapore, better pick up a membership form of WP and do your part for Spore.

The PAP had been observing Low ever since he won his seat in the August 1991 general elections. The PAP knew of Low's "extracurricular activities" during his overseas "business" trips. It also reasoned that as a Chinese educated, Low would have limited influence over the English educated intelligentsia and electorate. In particular, the PAP saw no way in which Low, as a Chinese educated MP, would have any appeal to the significant 23% minority bloc. It knew of his ambitions and concluded that he was someone the PAP could not only make use off but work with when it became necessary for the PAP to provide a "release valve" for the electorate.

Come 2015/16, vote in the daring and good orator/debater like Dr Chee S J and Kenneth Jeyaratnam into the Cabinet to fight for us.There are oso dedicated members from the NSP like Nicole Seah and her husband and wife team mates.It will be good to deny the PAP the 2/3 majority to see how it will work with coalition partners. At least the people get to see if it dare persist with it's arrogance and bully tactic..

It's provided cheap labour to work as cleaner, maids, contractor etc .. for Singaporean. What the issues here? Look around you, Most Mid-class Singaporean owned 2 or more houses. Govt provided you with 2 million Foreigners to work Cheaply and allow you Highest Rental Income from addition home. Singaporean just needs to exploit the Foreigners and Earn Passive Rental Income from them. That is why so many people in their 40+ don’t want to work now!

It's provided cheap labour to work as cleaner, maids, contractor etc .. for Singaporean. What the issues here? Look around you, Most Mid-class Singaporean owned 2 or more houses. Govt provided you with 2 million Foreigners to work Cheaply and allow you Highest Rental Income from addition home. Singaporean just needs to exploit the Foreigners and Earn Passive Rental Income from them. That is why so many people in their 40+ don’t want to work now!

You have failed to see how cheap labor corrupts a society as well as the cruelty it inflict on certain segment of population. You also failed to see how suppression of labor impede technology advancement.

Today, a large segment of Malay population works in manual jobs earning less than 1k. Their pathetic salary is precisely the reason that their family breakdown. Their children go into ITE. If the parents can earn more $ to give them tution, they would succeed.

We could have shared the wealth of our society by creating a shortage of labor. Then the salary of manual jobs worker will go up. The Malay people will have less problem. Malay are screwed when PAP import FT like mad. LKY and LHL will pay for this if God exist.

Besides, many technolgy advancement in the world are due to expensive labor force. The western country invented bulldozer, cranes and all other automation because it is too expensive to hire workers.

Large scale efficient industrial planting in the South of USA are possible because the North South War in USA emanicipate slave.

Without slave, elites have to think of technological means that replace human. That brought a huge gain in material well-being.

Today, most advance countries in the world use pre-fabricate for construction. We are still pouring cement. Why? Becuase Bangala workers are so cheap that it make no sense to innovate.

One little discussed topic is the fear factor. With PE election, people have shown that they are no longer afraid of voting for oppositions. This is a BIG deal. With more than half the workers employed by the govt and its GLC corporations, people are no longer afraid of losing their jobs. The future of the country is starting to worry even these people.

What's the size of the middle class in Singapore? How many Singaporeans own multiple properties? Any figures for us? Somehow, I just don't think the 82% majority who live in public housing that they do not really own are living in opulence.

Veritas said... It's provided cheap labour to work as cleaner, maids, contractor etc .. for Singaporean. What the issues here? Look around you, Most Mid-class Singaporean owned 2 or more houses. Govt provided you with 2 million Foreigners to work Cheaply and allow you Highest Rental Income from addition home. Singaporean just needs to exploit the Foreigners and Earn Passive Rental Income from them. That is why so many people in their 40+ don’t want to work now!

You have failed to see how cheap labor corrupts a society as well as the cruelty it inflict on certain segment of population. You also failed to see how suppression of labor impede technology advancement.

Today, a large segment of Malay population works in manual jobs earning less than 1k. Their pathetic salary is precisely the reason that their family breakdown. Their children go into ITE. If the parents can earn more $ to give them tution, they would succeed.

We could have shared the wealth of our society by creating a shortage of labor. Then the salary of manual jobs worker will go up. The Malay people will have less problem. Malay are screwed when PAP import FT like mad. LKY and LHL will pay for this if God exist.

Besides, many technolgy advancement in the world are due to expensive labor force. The western country invented bulldozer, cranes and all other automation because it is too expensive to hire workers.

Large scale efficient industrial planting in the South of USA are possible because the North South War in USA emanicipate slave.

Without slave, elites have to think of technological means that replace human. That brought a huge gain in material well-being.

Today, most advance countries in the world use pre-fabricate for construction. We are still pouring cement. Why? Becuase Bangala workers are so cheap that it make no sense to innovate.

Veritas good replied to my post. I Fully Agreed Singapore need more people like you and less of this Elite.In the name of Capitalism they EnSlaved through exploitation to Poor and UnEducated!

"The political narrative characterises economic growth as a policy not a political end. The political end is national survival. The rationalisation is that Singapore must have growth in order to prosper and without prosperity, we decline and fail

Until otherwise proved, we must thus accept that our particular circumstances imply that economic growth as a policy objective is sound and serves the supreme political end – national survival

The future political contests will be on two axes.The first, and more difficult, is the contest of political ends. The ruling party has a well-oiled political narrative. The opposition could try to present a competing alternative political narrative which can win the support of the people.The second axis is where the opposition could embrace the prevailing political narrative and limit its case to arguments about policy means. The second approach need not necessarily weaken any eventual claim by the opposition to form the government but neither does it help it.

If the opposition is unable to present a countervailing political narrative then it should be careful to avoid confusing the electorate with futile disputes about shared political ends. Their focus should instead be on the debatable policy means to secure those ends. Future debates must be characterised by political actors investing energy and intellect to study, compose and present compelling policy ideas to move us forward."

You are being sucked into a whirlpool of conflagration of forces where your political narrative is derived or forged. Naturally, the strength of your leadership is sweat driven or motivated. Therein you plotted the axis which will further seal your fate. Dust you come, dust you shall return. Not something which will be apparent to your myopic academia I suppose.

(This one is a PAP talent.Just like Dr Koh Poh Koon of "Everybody owns a car" fame.

Talks the PAP poppycock about Singaporeans "owning" our HDB flats.Really?So can I sue HDB if the title deed says my HDB flat belongs to HDB?)

Please check how many people rent out their HDB and stay in Condo. Please check how many 2nd mortgage banks give out with MAS. Please think why need to have cooling measure for 2nd and 3rd property. I wish I was Elite!

My take on this is that pappies have already Plan B in place. If it produces freak election results, they and their families already have safe havens abroad. After all, why pay yourself millions of dollars? So that you can reap the millions in investments abroad, they may have gold bullions stored in Swiss bank vaults & other offshore havens in Europe. Their children & their grandchildren futures are iron cast secured. Who cares if the ordinary Spore citizen gives their vote to the opposition. Pappies know their doomsday will come some time. Just a matter of when. There may be accelearators to push it forward or it may just happen gradually over a few decades.

Blind are those that continue to have faith in pappies. Pinky has just announced that he does not have 20/20 foresight so the next question is why is he paying himself millions of dollars. And why are ex ministers & pappy MPs running GLCs? Ready to run road liao.

Considering the mess that they have created due to their lack of 20/20 foresight as admitted by the PM, the entire Cabinet should take a deep 90 degrees bow (the Japanese/Korean/Taiwanese style) to give their long overdue apologies to the ordinary rank and file Singaporeans who suffered the most from the said mess ranging from half-baked and misguided policies in population, transportation, healthcare, housing and other social issues.

Before the PAP sets itself to correct the situation, they would do well first and foremost to show their humility and sincereity. Just my humble thoughts nia!

But from his statement, the feeling is like him telling all that its impossible to predict the future and so again not their fault

"He then went on to do an unconvincing publicity stunt of pulling leaves from a drain."

Dr Koh in video says ""Sticking your hand in and pulling out a few dead leaves solves the problem that has been plaguing the people for the last hour. I don't think that it is a big sacrifice; It's definitely something that will benefit people walking the path this morning.""

hello,then where the f#@uck are you before and when orchard road is flood caused by choked drain ? Why didn't we see you clear those dead leaves and debris from the drain to prevent orchid flood ? Where is your video showing your act of goodness ?

How exactly is Ho Ching, an engineer by training, qualified to head a sovereign wealth fund? Singapore is so lacking in talent that they couldn't find a single Singaporean out of 3.25 million with financial experience? How do you justify the annual salary of Hsien Loong, which after a review of sorts remains more than 5 times that of German Chancellor Angela Merkel?

If "gramen" does not step up to take their measures, the next GE will be very much highly be affected especially on the housing problems that most Singaporeans are facing right now... This will be very likely when most of the BTOs and the ECs are mature and again the high selling prices whereby young families who wished to get a house will face their challenges. This is just one of the examples that the bubble will soon burst...

The PAP lost 1 GRC together with decline of percentage votes from S'preans in GE2011. Subsequently it lost 2 by-elections. In other Democratic countries, the Head of the Party would have stepped down and ate humble pie. Why not in S'pore. Anyone?

By 2016, there will be 110,000 new public housing units and 90,000 new private units. Some 4,100 new hospital beds will also be available then.The Government is also planning and investing in infrastructure ahead of demand.This includes setting aside land for 700,000 more homes, and planning for more jobs, green spaces, recreational and sports facilities to be located nearer to residential areas like Jurong Lake District, Paya Lebar Central and One North.

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Population is targeted to grow by 1 to 2 million but planning to build 700, 000 more homes?

engineers have good mathematical, logical & financial mind ok. but some of them can be so technical, mechanical & too robotic.

sometimes, they can look at formula & number so much thinking that the world can be formulated & predicted with much accuracy until a Black Swan hit them. they have forgotten that the real world does not move in mathematical & logical order as real world is run by human who are full of emotions & can be chaotically unpredictable when faced with stress & constraints which are plentiful in this ever changing modern society.

the most frightening part is those brainy phds & scholars sometimes fall in love with their stupid & idiotic theories too much.

The PMs' Father Lee Kuan Yew had the Best Foresight when he implemented the STOP AT TWO POLICY 30 years ago.

It is just that he(LKY) did not anticipate his Son Lee Hsien Loong to face the consequence of that Policy.

Anyway, the Theory of populstion growth to augment economic growth is pure bull. If large population result in high economic growth, then China, India, Indonesia would have been at the fore front of economic success for centuries.

The US has the Worlds' Third Largest Population and is the Number One Economy Power not due to its' population size. It is it's technological advancements that propelled it to the Position. It is waning now as it(USA) has priced itself out of competition. And Singapore is following in it's(USA) footstep.

Okay, it is quite true that population growth can improve economic development and improvement resulting from consumption. And more so if wealthy foreigners are the immigrants. BUT, do we have the space and utilities to cope? Is our tiny island able to accommodate the increase in population without compromising our wellbeings?

If the Answers to the afore-mentioned Questions are positive now, what happens when there is global, regional and local economic downturn? Does the Government have measure in place for such contingency?

A severe unexpected contingency could harm the people to the extend of calamitous proportion. By then it will be too late for anyone to claim lack of foresight.

While composing this comment, heard one Professor talking at CNA liked as though he had the Future of Singapore in his hand. And this one Professor is a crack in my opinion.

The PMs' Father Lee Kuan Yew had the Best Foresight when he implemented the STOP AT TWO POLICY 30 years ago.

It is just that he(LKY) did not anticipate his Son Lee Hsien Loong to face the consequence of that Policy.

Anyway, the Theory of populstion growth to augment economic growth is pure bull. If large population result in high economic growth, then China, India, Indonesia would have been at the fore front of economic success for centuries.

The US has the Worlds' Third Largest Population and is the Number One Economy Power not due to its' population size. It is it's technological advancements that propelled it to the Position. It is waning now as it(USA) has priced itself out of competition. And Singapore is following in it's(USA) footstep.

Okay, it is quite true that population growth can improve economic development and improvement resulting from consumption. And more so if wealthy foreigners are the immigrants. BUT, do we have the space and utilities to cope? Is our tiny island able to accommodate the increase in population without compromising our wellbeings?

If the Answers to the afore-mentioned Questions are positive now, what happens when there is global, regional and local economic downturn? Does the Government have measure in place for such contingency?

A severe unexpected contingency could harm the people to the extend of calamitous proportion. By then it will be too late for anyone to claim lack of foresight.

While composing this comment, heard one Professor talking at CNA liked as though he had the Future of Singapore in his hand. And this one Professor is a crack in my opinion.

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I have not read the White Paper in its entirety but at first glance the numbers don't make sense.

First it talks about a sustainable population. The word "sustainable" means maintaining a state of dynamic equilibrium, not an increase of 30%. If we are short of 20,000 babies to sustain the population why are we importing 100,000 grown up bodies a year? Shouldn't it be 20,000 immigrants (adults or babies) if the goal is to make up the shortfall of babies?

Secondly, the GDP growth forecast has been lowered to 2-3% annually and this matches the rate of immigration to 2030. This means GDP growth will be driven entirely by more imputs of labour without any increase of productivity. You can always increase the production of sausages by adding more sausage machines.